KUALA LUMPUR, June 17 ― Humour can be an effective tool when it comes to tackling tricky topics.
Especially awkward conversations surrounding pornography.
The New Zealand government has deployed two actors playing porn stars in its latest internet safety campaign advert for young people.
In the video, two naked adult video actors named Sue and Derek turn up unannounced at Sandra’s house to inform her that her son has been “watching us online”.
Comedian Justine Smith who plays Sue then tells Sandra that her son has been watching their videos on multiple devices such as “his laptop, iPad, Playstation, his phone, your phone, Smart TV projector”.
There’s also a clever interjection of how porn does not reflect reality for impressionable minds when Sue says: “We usually perform for adults but your son’s just a kid. He might not know how relationships actually work.”
She adds that they “don’t even talk about consent” and “just get straight to it”.
“Yeah, and I’d never act like that in real life,” replies Derek.
The scene then cuts to Sandra’s son walking in with laptop in hand and drops his cereal bowl in shock, leading his mum to say it’s time for a conversation.
The video ends with the narrator informing the audience that “many young Kiwis are using porn to learn about sex. Keep it real online” before the URL of the advice site appears.
Sue and Derek’s bold appearance came about after a report last year which discovered New Zealand teens mainly learn about sex using the internet.
The Keep It Real Online video is part of a series of public announcements with the aim of educating children to help them develop online safety skills so they are able to surf the web in a safe and healthy manner.
The campaign also has videos on cyberbullying and child grooming.
The awareness video has been viewed more than 1.4 million times on Keep It Real Online’s YouTube channel since it was posted earlier this month.
Social media users have also been praising the unorthodox concept by Motion Sickness, the agency that concepted the ad campaign.
On Twitter, the clip garnered over nine million views.
NZ does it again. pic.twitter.com/gsqvrnOTsq
— Kim Mackenzie (@Kim_BKLYN) June 14, 2020
“Parents should feel confident when dealing with these issues… at the end of the day, they’re the best person to keep their child safe,” Motion Sickness spokeswoman Hilary Ngan Kee was quoted as saying by various news outlets.
“You don’t need to have all the answers, but supporting your child and giving that ‘adult’ guidance as they navigate the choppy waters of the online world will really make a difference.”
